Muzzammil Dhedhy

Hejaz Financial Services, Australia’s leading Islamic finance provider, has announced that four of its funds have been certified by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia (RIAA).

RIAA’s Responsible Investment Certification Program is the leading initiative for distinguishing quality responsible, ethical and impact investment products in Australia and New Zealand. RIAA sets strict criteria for certifying investment products, helping provide consumers with the assurance that an ethical or responsible investment product is doing what it claims to do.

Regardless of their faith, retail investors increasingly want to see a reflection of themselves in their investments. RIAA consumer research shows that 89% of Australians and 83% of New Zealanders expect their investments to be made responsibly and ethically, while 4 in 5 Australians are now expecting investment products to be verified as delivering on their promise by an independent certifier.^[1]

The certification of Hejaz’s funds cements its position as one of Australia’s leading ultra-ethical fund managers and investment product providers. While Hejaz’s mission is to enable Australian Muslims to access traditional financial services that they are typically excluded from, it also wants its products to be taken up by non-Muslim investors seeking to avoid greenwashed products.

The four funds certified by the RIAA are:

• Hejaz Global Ethical Fund – Hejaz’s flagship fund and Australia’s largest single standalone Islamic fund
• Hejaz Equities Fund – A Halal equities fund targeting 15% p.a. return net of fees. Now available as an ETF (ASX:ISLM)
• Hejaz Property Fund – A fund that applies Shariah investment principles to globally listed REITs, targeting 10% p.a. net return of fees. Now available as an ETF (ASX:HJZP)
• Hejaz Income Fund – Australia’s highest returning Islamic Income Fund

Muzzammil Dhedhy, COO at Hejaz Financial Services commented “Australians want to see themselves reflected in their choices, whether it be their investments, their clothing manufacturers, or food suppliers, social responsibility and values-based living is become increasingly prevalent. But there are a lot of imposters out there that are labelling their products ethical when in fact they are anything but.

“Hejaz’s mission is to not just enable financial access for Muslims but also provide non-Muslims with ultra-ethical products that they can trust. That’s why it was so imperative for Hejaz to gain certification from the RIAA, Australia’s leading responsible investing certification body, to ensure that our investors know that when they invest in a Hejaz product, they can count on not being a victim of greenwashing.”

In order to become RIAA certified, financial products must adhere to strict criteria, set out in the RIAA’s Certification Program. The eight requirements are:

• investment strategies are formal, disclosed, consistent, auditable and fit for purpose
• labels are clear, honest and not misleading
• product avoids significant harm
• product accounts for environmental, social and governance factors
• discloses full holdings, performance, sustainability outcomes and engagement and voting practices
• managed by active stewards, and managers can detail the stewardship practices and outcomes
• organisation has formal commitment to responsible investment
• organisation provides educational information to members and customers about responsible investment strategies and investment outcomes

Simon O’Connor, CEO of RIAA, commented: “RIAA’s Responsible Investment Certification Program differentiates quality, true to label responsible investment products which meet the Responsible Investment Standard. We congratulate Hejaz Financial Services for meeting the high benchmark set for Certification for four of its funds.”

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[1] https://responsibleinvestment.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/RI-Certification-Program-Quick-Guide.pdf

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